John h



(Mode1.)

J. H. GUEST.

REGULATOR FOR ELECTRIC LIGHTS.

No. 254,546. Pat'ented Mar. 7,1882.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN H. GUEST, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK.

REGULATOR FOR ELECTRIC LIGHTS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 254,546, dated March7,1882.

Application filed August 30, 1880. (ModeL) T all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN H. GUEST, of Brooklyn, in the county of Kingsand State of New York, have invented an Improvement in Regulators forElectric Lamps, of which the following is a specification.

Before my invention an electric-light-regulating apparatus had been madein which the electric current was caused to develop heat, and theexpansion of different'metals under varying degrees of heat was employedto determine the relative position of the carbons to each other andthereby the electric are between the electrodes.

In my present improvement I make use of an axial electro-magnet and alever to move one of the carbons and feed it gradually toward the otheras the electrodes are consumed,

and with this apermanent magnet is employed, so as to cause the leverand axial magnet to operate with great promptness as soon as the currentbecomes weakened by the increased length of are between the electrodes,and I construct a thermostatic regulator of two different metals incontact with a piece of car bon or similar material, that becomes heatedin consequence of the resistance offered to the electric current passingthrough the same. The conducted heat from the carbon to the thermostatoperates the latter and moves one of the carbons, and regulates withaccuracy thelength of the are between the carbons, and consequently thelight, so as to obtain great 'uniformity.

In thermostat devices that have heretofore been employed the two stripsof dilferent metals have been acted upon by the current passing directlythrough them but they had to be small and delicate to ofl'er sufficientresistance to the electric current to become more or less heated. By myimprovement I am enabled to make the thermostat strong and reliable,because the heat is not developed in itself, but it is conducted intothe thermostat from the block of carbon or similar material in which theheat is developed.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is an elevation of my improvements. 7 Fig. 2is a plan view below the line or a"; and Fig. 3 is a diagramillustrating the thermostat and a circuit-closing device in a shunt, toshort-circuit the current in case of injury to any one lamp, and therebyprevent the extinguishing of other lights in the same circuit.

The helix (0 is provided with an endwise moving core, I), to form anaxial electro-magnet. The core I) has a limited movement between theadjusting-screws c 0; and cl is a, lever connected with the core I) andmoving on a pivot, e.

The wheel f is adapted to be moved by the pawl 0 upon the lever (I, suchpawl taking teeth in the wheel f,- or by preference the Wheel f may havea cylindrical rim, and a clamp be substituted for the pawl 0, said clampbeing similar to the clamp in a wheel-feed sewing-machine, so that ineither case the wheel f is moved gradually and progressively every timethe core of the axial magnet moves downwardly. I employ this motion tofeed one carbon toward the other as they are consumed.

The carbon electrode 9 is in a suitable clamp, g, at the lower end of arod, h, and this rodis guided ina suitable tube or slide, h, so as tomove in line with the other electrode or carbon, k.

Around the wheel f there is a chain, "5, that is sutiiciently heavy forthe electric current to pass through the same without its becominghighly heated,and at the lower end of the chain aclamping-ring, l, issuspended, said ring surrounding the rod h, and the chain is connectednear one edge of the ring. Hence the upper edge of the ring at one sideand the lower edge at the other side gripe against the surface of therod h, and suspend it in consequence of the ring being suspended at oneside, and assuming a slightly-inclined position; but when this ring isheld level by the hand the rod may he slipped freely through the ring orthe ring moved over the rod. The spring to acts against the wheel f, andits pressure and friction should be regulated by the screw to, so thatthe weight of the carbon-holding rod and carbon will not turn this'whcel.

The electric current passes through the helix of the axial magnet andthrough the respective carbon electrodes, and the light is given betweenthe electrodes as now usual. The devises thus far described are forlowering the upper carbon toward the lower one as the carbon isconsumed. When the consumption-0t carbon increases the length of theelectric arc the resistance becomes greater, the current lessens, andthe core of the axial magnet descends, and in so doing swings thelever dand turns the wheel f, so as to lower the electrode. The adjustmenteffected by the screws 0 and 0 prevents the movement of the core beingmore than is necessary to cause the proper feed of the carbon.

The foregoing means will under ordinary circumstances operate the devicethat feeds the carbon; but to insure rapidity of downward movement inthe core I sometimes make use of an armature, m, upon the lever d, and apermanent magnet, n, adjacent thereto, the same being adjustable by thescrews n and n nearer to or farther from the armature m. Hence when themagnetism of the axial magnet lessens and the core begins to descend,the armature m is brought nearer to the permanent magnet, and theattractive force of said permanent magnet serves to accelerate themovementof the-lever and insure the full stroke thereof, even though theelectric current is augmented as the electrodes become nearer together.

If desired, the wheel f may act directly upon the rod h, there being ayielding roller at the opposite side of the rod to produce the necessaryfrictional contact, as shown in the detached view, Fig. 4.

A thermostat has heretofore been employed to adjust the carbonsaccording to the heat developed by the electric current passing throughsuch thermostat; but these devices, being very delicate, are liable toinjury. I make use of a spring, 0, within a case, p, to elevatethelowercarbon holder and carbon 70, and keep it toward the uppercarbon, g, and I also use a strong thermostat, q, made of bars of brassand steel or other metals of different expansive powers,

so that when heated the forked end acts in the opposite direction to thespring and presses down upon the carbon-holder, and moves it and theelectrode to increase the distance and lessen the current enough tocause a decrease in the heat of the thermostat. The block of carbon r,or similar material, offers sufficient resistance to the electriccurrent passing through it to become heated, and to change itstemperature according to the strength of the current the thermostat-barsare clamped firmly to the carbon block near one end,and the heat passestherefrom to the thermostat by conduction, and the thermostat regulateswith the greatest accuracy the length of the electric are, so as tomaintain uniformity of light. The electric current also by preferencepasses through the thermostat-bars.

The thermostat and its block of carbon to heat the same may also be usedto open and close a shunt-circuit in cases where any one lamp in acircuit containing several lamps may become injured. This is applied inthe manner shown in the diagram Fig. 3. In this there isa shuntbetweentheline-wires,in which are the carbon block 0* and a rheostat orresistance, It, the combined resistance of the carbon block andrheost-at being greater than that of the lamp. When the lamp fails togive light in consequence of the carbons becoming separated the entirecurrent is obliged to pass through this shunt, and the temperature ofthe carbon block 1 and thermostat is raised, and the thermostat operatesa short-circuiting devicesuch as the weighte'd lever t-that falls overand closes contact between the spring a and the adjustable stop a, andestablishes the current through the short-circuit connection, whichprevents the other lamps in the circuit being extinguished.

The resistance-coil B may surround the thermostat q, so as to aid inheating the same by the heat generated in the coil.

In Fig. 5 l have shown a vertical section and sectional plan of thecarbon and circuit connections to the thermostat-bars. Thethermostat-bars q and metal plate or ring q, to which the circuit-wireis connected, must be firmly clamped at opposite sides of the carbon,and a convenient manner of so doing is by a screw that passes freelythrough the carbon r and plate q, so as to be insulated from the same,as shown; but two screws and a bridge across the thermostat-bars mightbe used.

I claim as my invention- 1. The combination, with the axialelectromagnet, the lever, pawl, and feed-wheel, of an armature on thelever, and a permanent magnet, and the circuit-connections andelectrodes of an electric light, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination, with a thermostat, of a block of carbon or similarmaterial and electric-circuit connections passing through the carbon,substantially as set forth, whereby the thermostat is heated byconduction from the carbon.

3. The combination, in an electric lamp, of two electrodes, a thermostatoperated by the heat developed from the current and acting to separatethe electrodes, an axial electromagnet, a lever and pawl, a feed-wheel,and a connection from the same to one electrode for feeding the carbon,substantially as set forth.

4;. The thermostat-bars q, carbon block '1',

and circuit plate or ring g at the opposite side of the carbon block, incombination with the clamping screw or screws to bind the partstogether, substantially as set forth.

5. The combination, with an electric lamp, of a resistance and athermostat in a shunt around the lamp, and a circuit-closing deviceoperated by the thermostat to short-circuit the current, substantiallyas set forth.

6. The combination, in an electric lamp, of an axial magnet, a permanentmagnet, a lever, a wheel, a pawl, the carbon and carbonholder, aconnection from the latter to the wheel, and a friction device appliedto the wheel, substantially as set forth.

Signed by me this 27th day of August, A. D. 1880.

Witnesses: J H. GUEST.

WILLIAM G. Morr, HAROLD SERRELL.

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